How Is Cold Calling an effective technique for the Sales Team?

Traditional sales techniques don’t always work in favour of businesses. With the drift in the market, there has been a change in the sales strategies too. However, there is one tactic that never fails, i.e., cold calling.

Something that sounds counter-intuitive in the world of automation, cold calling is still one of the most productive sales practices today. As an old strategy in the marketing domain, cold calling is a tried and tested method. Undeniably, it has proved to be instrumental in advertising products and services.

What is cold calling

One of the most efficient traditional methods of telemarketing is cold calling. In this, calls are made to the target customers not at a pre-decided time or on the basis of a pre-decided topic. Rather, it interrupts the prospective customer through whatever he is doing. With no apparent interest in the offered product or service, cold-calling sometimes annoys the customers too. 

A massive challenge faced through this activity is delivering a sales pitch to people who have no prior knowledge about you or your offerings. Yet, it has stood the test of time. A conventional way of endorsing and selling products, cold calling has its own set of advantages. Cold calling has become a part of the basic organisational research. Knowing the customer before a formal meet is better for saving time, effort and money. Here is how cold calling can help change your business reality: 

1. Identification of targets: Cold calling helps in easy identification of the target audience. It enables you to understand your potential customer. If you are a business pitching to another business, a cold call will help you learn whom to contact for the sales of your product or service. Through this activity, you understand the requirements of your client and who handles it in the target organisation. Mapping calls, too, assist the businesses in this. 
2. Gaining insights: A cold call aids the business in understanding market demand. Also, you can figure out the reason behind the low response rates. Through various calling campaigns, you understand why you are not receiving the expected response. You can always ask your customers about their needs, and the simple explanations can serve as insight and help target the appropriate customer base. You can change your target or modify the product range as per the requirement and get away with the irrelevant data in the process. Either way, cold calling is a great way for gaining insights and spotting the problem area and take corrective action.
3. Master the craft: If you are new to the business, cold calling can help you develop confidence while conducting the activity. Being confident and comfortable by speaking to your potential client is a craft that you learn with practice. This includes delivering a value proposition to the potential customer in a compelling way and driving him to make a purchase decision. “Are We A Fit” calls and mapping calls come after the cold call in the process. Mastering the art of cold calling requires consistency and hard work that amounts to more than 250 calls before moving ahead to AWAF calls. 
4. Increase responses: As a cold caller, you are more than just a computer or a series of keystrokes. You come out as a real human. As a part of the cold calling process, you must drop voicemails to your prospects. This builds trust in the prospect as though he is not interacting with an automated machine. In addition to this, a voice mail or cold call prompts the potential client to respond to emails and give you more insights. Unquestionably, it is one of the best ways for increasing the response rate from customers. 
5. Increase conversions: Indisputably, cold calling contributes to the consumer decision-making journey. Once you have sent emails as a part of the cold email campaign, the next step is to call every prospective customer as soon as you get a response. An immediate call post receiving the email response is the best way to capture client interest. It is easier to amplify client attention when you are on top of his mind than to generate interest at a later stage. This shortens the decision-making process and takes you one step closer to the sale.

Working in the competitive landscape, the sales representatives need to sharpen their skills and hone themselves for opening up new growth opportunities. This requires ample preparation and practice. Persistence and positive mind are the keys to cold calling success. But, these cold calls must be done right in order to reach the required mark. If you do not want your customer to be frustrated during the call, you must do adequate research before you initiate one.